Devices and methods for controlling the properties of chemical species during time-dependent processes. A device includes a reactor for containing one or more chemical species of a time-dependent process, an extraction pump for automatically and continuously extracting an amount of the one or more chemical species from the reactor, one or more detectors for measuring property changes of the one or more extracted chemical species and generating a continuous stream of data related to the one or more property changes to the one or more chemical species during a time interval, and a process controller configured to fit the continuous stream of data to a mathematical function to predict one or more properties of the one or more chemical species at a future time point and make one or more process decisions based on the prediction of one or more properties at the future time point.

An actuator is provided that includes a housing, a linear actuating shaft disposed within the housing, a piston coupled with the shaft, and a fluid barrier disposed on an end of the shaft and encircled by the piston. The piston is movable longitudinally between an extended configuration and a retracted configuration upon rotation of the shaft. The fluid barrier engages an inner surface of the piston preventing fluid communication across the fluid barrier. The fluid barrier has a shaft engaging side which receives the shaft and a fluid facing side. A cavity is formed between the piston and the fluid facing side and expands when the piston moves to the extended configuration and contracts when the piston moves to the retracted configuration. A port is disposed in the piston and extends from the cavity to external the piston thereby permitting fluid communication between the cavity and external the piston.

A method for controlling temperature of a chemical reaction without measuring a temperature of the chemical reaction. Changes in mass of a chemical reaction are monitored and are used to calculate the temperature of the system. The reaction can be maintained at a desired temperature (T) without measuring the temperature. The disclosed method is useful for reactions that occur at non-equilibrium conditions where any measured temperature would presume steady-state conditions.

Houdry lumps can be reduced by controlling the reactors in a fixed bed dehydrogenation process for producing olefins according to defined rules. A programmable logic controller can apply the rules to the operation of the dehydrogenation unit and control the operation of individual reactors according to the rules. By doing so, the performance of dehydrogenation units can be improved without adding any heat generating inerts, such as CuO-α alumina For example, the dehydrogenation units can be operated according to combinatorics in the programmable logic controller such that the farthest two reactors in the dehydrogenation unit never operate in parallel in the dehydrogenation or air regeneration steps.

A method for optimising the operation of a facility for catalytic reforming, the facility including a multitude of reactors which have a catalyser and through which an operating gas including hydrocarbons and molecular hydrogen successively flows, wherein the composition of the operating gas in the reactors changes and wherein a product results at the outlet side of the last reactor. Specific constant characteristics as well as initial operating parameters that are present during the operation of the facility are acquired. A computational simulation of the chemical processes in the reactors then takes place, wherein results of a measurement of the chemical composition of the product at the outlet side of the last reactor is also included. A computational simulation of the chemical processes in the reactors with different varied operating parameters is subsequently carried out and set of optimised operating parameters is determined from the computed chemical composition.

A method for controlling temperature of a chemical reaction without measuring a temperature of the chemical reaction. Changes in mass of a chemical reaction are monitored and are used to calculate the temperature of the system. The reaction can be maintained at a desired temperature (T) without measuring the temperature. The disclosed method is useful for reactions that occur at non-equilibrium conditions where any measured temperature would presume steady-state conditions.

A reactor system includes at least one reactant provided to perform a reaction. The system includes one or more sensors configured to detect sensor data regarding the reaction. The system includes processing circuitry configured to receive the sensor data from the one or more sensors, apply one or more machine learning models to the sensor data to generate a measurement regarding at least one of the reaction or an activity of at least one catalyst used to perform the reaction, and control at least one of a temperature of the reactor, a flow rate of the at least one reactant, or a concentration of the at least one reactant responsive to the measurement.

A method for optimising the operation of a facility for catalytic reforming, the facility including a multitude of reactors which have a catalyser and through which an operating gas including hydrocarbons and molecular hydrogen successively flows, wherein the composition of the operating gas in the reactors changes and wherein a product results at the outlet side of the last reactor. Specific constant characteristics as well as initial operating parameters that are present during the operation of the facility are acquired. A computational simulation of the chemical processes in the reactors then takes place, wherein results of a measurement of the chemical composition of the product at the outlet side of the last reactor is also included. A computational simulation of the chemical processes in the reactors with different varied operating parameters is subsequently carried out and set of optimised operating parameters is determined from the computed chemical composition.

Devices and methods for controlling the properties of chemical species during time-dependent processes. A device includes a reactor for containing one or more chemical species of a time-dependent process, an extraction pump for automatically and continuously extracting an amount of the one or more chemical species from the reactor, one or more detectors for measuring property changes of the one or more extracted chemical species and generating a continuous stream of data related to the one or more property changes to the one or more chemical species during a time interval, and a process controller configured to fit the continuous stream of data to a mathematical function to predict one or more properties of the one or more chemical species at a future time point and make one or more process decisions based on the prediction of one or more properties at the future time point.

A reactor system includes at least one reactant provided to perform a reaction. The system includes one or more sensors configured to detect sensor data regarding the reaction. The system includes processing circuitry configured to receive the sensor data from the one or more sensors, apply one or more machine learning models to the sensor data to generate a measurement regarding at least one of the reaction or an activity of at least one catalyst used to perform the reaction, and control at least one of a temperature of the reactor, a flow rate of the at least one reactant, or a concentration of the at least one reactant responsive to the measurement.